Crucible
by Bloodmoon234
Summary: Harry Potter, a new graduate from the three year Auror Training Program, is now employed under the Homicide and Serious Crime Division of the Auror Office. Partnered to someone that occasionally breaks from the Auror Standard Protocol, Harry is now faced with a question if the end does justify the means especially to the cruel situation of their post-war society.
1. Welcome to the HSC

**DISCLAIMER**:_ I am going to say this once for this entire story: I do not own the Harry Potter franchise because if I did, I might do things different about Harry and Hermione._

* * *

People mostly thought that after you won a civil war, everything is going to be fine. That is definitely not the case. In case you didn't know, poverty is prevalent due to high number of orphaned children, widows that were to scarred by their experiences, and families that lost everything they once had and along with poverty comes crime. Crime will reach an all time high like there would be murders right at the corner, robberies that can occur anytime of the day, someone getting beat up just because he can't pay his dues and many many more. Worst of all the government will definitely have a hard time controlling the situation and it will be a whole lot harder because the people no longer has any confidence from the government. So, do you know the source of all these things?

It's the damages.

It would be far more difficult to repair when these damages was caused by the civil war because now, the government will have to get the money from their own people to protect these people, to provide to them the services they need from their own purses. This would be through higher taxes, being under foreign debt, and extracting resources from the losing faction of the war(which won't be much); the government will just become less favorable to the people because they are further strangling them. Therefore, the government has a high chance of never recovering from the damages ever again. In this fucked-up situation that was being described, one may ask "Why is it important to say this?"

The answer is simple. The British Magical Society is suffering the same fate.

The magical society was almost lawless during the first two years after the war, the situation similar to what happened to Germany after the First World War or to Japan after the Second World War. The Ministry of Magic may be recovering now but that is not enough to solve the problem. This is why at the age of nineteen years old; Harry Potter firmly decided to enlist to the Auror Training Program. He has hopes to help the society that once welcomed him and once treated him an equal all those years ago. He believed that being an Auror is the best way he can help for Harry Potter is famously known as a war hero, this is what the majority thinks he does best. It was in this new chapter of his life, this time of discord that our story begins.

* * *

This is it.

The only sentence that rung inside Harry's head. Three years of Auror Training to better prepare himself for this job even though he had a free pass for it already. At the age of twenty-two, Harry Potter is now going to be a full-fledged Auror just as he said to Prof. McGonagall when she asked of him for his career options when he was fifteen.

"Glad to finally have you here Mr. Potter and I am Percival Richmond." Senior Auror Richmond said as he shook Harry's hand as he welcomed him to the Auror Office. This Richmond is not too thin nor too fat and beyond forty years old and has a white hair with a receding hair line. He unusually wears a grey three piece tweed suit with a pair of brown leather shoes. This is unusual since most of the people in the Ministry wears robes rather than...well, muggle fashion.

"It is a pleasure being here Sir and please, call me Harry." Harry answered

"Just to orient you about the office, let me tell you in advance that we got...well bigger than before. The Auror Office has been rebuilt after Kingsley Shacklebolt became Minister and in this new structure, we created a new division and relocated the existing divisions for each specific types of crime. The first floor is the Reception Area, unauthorized personnel are only allowed here at a certain point, and it also holds Combat Practice Facility for all the Aurors that wants a little practice of their skills. Economic and Specialist Crime Division, call them ESC for short, Organized Crime, and Special Response are on the second floor." Richmond explained until Harry interrupted him

"Pop quiz, Harry: What do the ESC and Special Response specialize on?"

"The ESC is formed after the war as a safeguard against the formation of any illegal well-funded operations which was one of the main strength of the Death Eaters. They handle financial crimes, theft, money laundering and also handle smuggling and other crimes that would involve other countries. The Special Response division is more of a crisis management protocol of the office that involves violence. Whenever a situation goes out of control like a stakeout or whenever the suspects started firing spells at us, we call them for support." Harry answered.

"You are right, Harry which is why Special Response is near both the ESC and Organized Crime Division since they are the ones that mostly gets into tough situations. You will be assigned in Homicide and Serious Crimes Division, the colloquial term for our division is HSC, and that is on the third floor along with Forensics. Covert Operations, Muggle Involved Crimes and also Central Booking and Archive will be on the fourth floor. I am the Head of Homicide and Serious Crime Division so you work under me and I report directly to the Head of the Auror Office. Is that clear?" Richmond said as both he and Harry is now climbing up the stairs

"Perfectly sir."

"Good. Other Divisions like to partner rookies together to further foster good cooperation between them but not me. I want my new recruits to adapt quicker on the job so I partnered you up with someone who is working under a whole lot longer to show you the ropes. No problems with that, Harry?" asked Richmond as he stopped walking.

"Of course not, sir." Harry answered

"I am starting to like you already. Now, we both know that a lot of the people here didn't undergo the same training as we did but that does not mean they are less competent. Your partner is not excluded from this so please, for the sake of cooperation, don't act all high and mighty to her and pass along the message to your fellow graduates. We need to be unified not broken." Richmond told Harry slowly and sternly so that he understood and obey what he said.

"That was never a problem with me so there is nothing to worry about but I will still pass along the message, sir." Harry answered

"That's my boy!" Richmond said as he patted Harry's back. "Here is your badge and the rest of your standard equipment is on your desk. Let me take you there and introduce you to your partner." Richmond said as he and Harry opened the door labelled as Homicide and Serious Crime Division.

The Homicide and Serious Crime Division is like an office room that Harry saw from muggle TV shows and movies. A large portion of the division is filled with neatly organized cubicles each containing a wooden desk with a typewriter on each one, a filing cabinet and a chair. This area is currently buzzling with activity like a groups of Aurors huddled together and probably brainstorming for a case or just plainly talking to one another while there are also those that just sitting on their desk either reading, writing, or typing something. This main area of the division is surrounded by rooms that Harry thinks are conference rooms, interrogation rooms, and private offices of Senior Aurors like the one beside him use.

"This is our main investigation area since most of our employees are stationed here and this will be your second home so familiarize yourself and here is your cubicle. Hope you learned how to type since we modernized a bit with the introduction of typewriters. It is implemented under my directives and hopefully most of the people here learned how by now." Richmond said as both he and Harry arrived at a clean and unoccupied cubicle.

On this desk is the rest of his standard issue equipment. A quick-quote quill for statements and a set of rings, referred to as "Hoops" by most Aurors. The Hoops are used to chase down suspects that disapparated out of scene by throwing it to the Disapparation Spot and it expands from a ring to a hoop, effectively opening a portal from the disapparation to the apparition spot of the suspect inside this hoop. Standard Issue Hoops can only open Disapparation Spot that was created within two hours since the spot was created which made the Hoops a must-have gadget for Aurors. There are also three wooden sticks that an Auror must only break in emergency situations to call back-up which is normally answered by Special Response.

"Thank you for the orientation sir. It was very helpful." Harry said to Richmond

"It is the least I can do. Well, it seems your partner was out for the moment. She occupies the cubicle right beside yours. Just wait for her here and as for the moment, she is the lead partner. That means you listen to what she says but that does not mean you are her own personal house elf. Just talk to me if you have concerns about any misconduct on her part. If you would excuse me, I have to get back to work." Richmond said as he left Harry.

"One moment sir." Harry said as Richmond stopped and looked back towards Harry."I hate to be rude but what is my partner's speciality? I just thought that it would be prudent for me to know since according to you, she did not undergo Auror Training?" Harry asked

"Your concerns are well founded since she never accomplished any N.E.W.T.s. In fact, only finished O.W.L.s. Many of your colleagues tend to underestimate her or just plainly spite her because of her background and credentials but the reason she is here is precisely because of her credentials. She is an experienced hunter. She was part of operations that took down dangerous criminals for quite a long time before she even became an Auror. Criminals that would take a lot of our resources and manpower to arrest, she can take care with less. I am not saying she took them all down alone all the time but nevertheless she has experience and that is the requirement I really value. The rest of the skills she needs for the job, we can teach her while she is working." Richmond replied.

"She sounds like a very capable person. It would be a pleasure working with her. We will not let you down." Harry said as Richmond just smiled and walked away. A hunter. That is what Harry's partner is. A woman no less but Harry has nothing against women. Seriously, one of his best friend is the smartest and brightest student of their batch from Hogwarts and she is a woman. Gender was not Harry's concern about his partner. His concern are the two words his new boss described her: "experienced hunter". Those are the words that best describes her skill set and quite frankly, it has a certain intimidation on it. It is like she is someone to be feared.

"You're my new partner?" a woman said with a Mid-Atlantic Accent. Harry turned around and he finally saw his new partner. His partner appears to be of the same age as he is. Has an athletic build and is approximately 5 foot and 9 inches tall. She appears to have an average breast size..approximately. She has a long loosely curled dirty blonde hair and a pair of bluish steel colored eyes. She is dressed in a brown aviator jacket while also wearing a pair of denim trousers and knee high almond colored boots.

"Wh-what? You're my partner? I thought you would be older?" Harry exclaimed.

"And I never expected the Gryffindor Golden Boy to be my partner. Well, not everything goes the way we expect it. I am going to have brunch, you coming?" the woman said and that reminded Harry that he did not take his breakfast for the day.

"Sure. Lead the way." Harry said as he gestured for the stairs.

* * *

"So, what's your name?" Harry asked as he was taking a bite of his sausage, egg & cheese sandwich.

"Wow! You really don't recognize me." His partner said as she looked at him while taking a sip from her cup of tea.

"What I know is that you attended Hogwarts the same time I was there and that you were from the Slytherin House." Harry told her

"Really...May I ask how did you come up with those assumptions?" She asked him

"When you first saw me earlier; of all the titles that people call me like the Boy-Who-Lived or the Chosen One, you called me the 'Gryffindor Golden Boy'. Most people do not call me that nowadays. It was sort of an inside thing that only lasted within my duration in Hogwarts, that allowed me to discern that you were also from Hogwarts the same time I was there." Harry explained to her as he sip his own cup of tea.

She just smiled and said "Your statement only verifies that I was there during the time you were at Hogwarts but that does not explain why I would be from the Slytherin House."

"It is also because of the same title. That title was mainly used by a lot of Slytherins and what finalized that conclusion is that you did not said it sarcastically, you said it like it was a fact. Only Slytherins say it like that." Harry finished.

"Now you are jumping to conclusions too fast. All that statement did was narrow down your choices but not finalize it. There are also Ravenclaws that believed that you can be rightfully called the Gryffindor Golden Boy because of your adventures." She said as she took a bite from her apple pie.

"Maybe but I got a feeling that I made a good guess. Even though you know who am I already, I am Harry Potter and you are?" Harry said as he offered his hand towards his partner.

"Daphne Greengrass. It's a pleasure meeting you." Daphne said as she shook his hand.

"Likewise" Harry said as they both let go of each other's respective hands. Harry took another bite of his sandwich and asked her "So, why does Richmond said that you are an 'experienced hunter'? What was it that you do before you became an Auror?"

She just took another bite then also took a sip from her cup and answered "I was a freelance combatant before I became an Auror."

Harry just stared blankly at her and said "I bloody don't know what that even means."

"Well, it means I was kind of self-employed and I took jobs that required combat expertise like bounty hunting." Daphne explained

"Yeah but that is not all, isn't it?" Harry said

"Yes, that is not all. I took private security jobs and also did private investigations. I was a licensed Private Investigator and Bounty Hunter back in the US. Last time I checked, I still got both." She replied

"Quite a history but not enough for Richmond to call you an experienced hunter. What is it that you did to warrant this title?" Harry questioned

Daphne just smirked and then said "Stick with me and you will find out. Besides, you can always do your homework. It won't be proper to call you an Auror if you don't."

"Tell me one of your 'adventures' and I will tell you one of mine." Harry said back to her as he just stared to her face. Her face. Her beautiful face. He just noticed it now since he has been trying to give off a reliable and professional impression the moment he woke up this morning. A thin set of eyebrows, thin pinkish lips, petite nose, a deep-set of pale cerulean eyes...those kind of things that Harry is now beginning to notice. '_Focus. Harry. Focus_' is what he said to himself.

As Harry was staring at her face, Daphne brought out her badge and looked at its back. She read the incoming news from it, took another sip from her cup and then looked at Harry. "Finish your meal Mr. Potter and get ready for a case. It seems we are going back to Hogwarts." She said as put her badge back into her pocket. Back at Hogwarts? A murder in Hogwarts?! Just who was it that came up with the idea to call Hogwarts the safest place in all of Britain? As a side-note at least Harry can think of something common between him and his partner, they are both dropouts.

* * *

_**AUTHOR'S NOTES:** Hey folks! I'm back...in a sort of way. If you read my other works, let me just tell you that I will still get back at them. I just got to get this out of my head and I want to share it to you guys. This new story sprout from my brother's statement about how lawless Japan was after the Second World War and my fascination to crime drama like the shows 'Castle', 'White Collar' and 'Hawaii Five-0'. It was from these I idea that I formed a scenario and the result is well, this. Anyway, let me remind you that I never spoke or written in perfect English so forgive my grammar. Also, the accent of Daphne in this story is similar to how Camilla Luddington speaks or maybe how Lara speaks in the 2013 reboot of Tomb Raider though the voice actress may not be speaking in Mid-Atlantic English but I am definitely sure it is not the classical British Accent that Haytham Kenway uses in the Assassin's Creed 3. The breast size of Daphne for this chapter would be the average breast size of British Women, 34D and that is like the same size of Kate Upton's. That is all for now and I hoped that you enjoyed this chapter. _


	2. Back to School: The Fall Guy

_**Author's Notes: **Hey guys! Here is another chapter of Crucible and I must apologize a little that it took a while (not as long as my other fics). I was just trying to find a beta reader and unfortunately for me, there was none I could find. It is through this reason that I wish ask someone from you, dear readers, could beta read this fic. I need assistance in probably spelling or grammar but more importantly is on the artistic aspect of the story. Some one to suggest what are possible plot holes, portrayal of the characters, dialogues and the likes. That is I would request kind readers and thank you for taking the time to read this part of the story. Please enjoy this introductory chapter of the Hogwarts arc and if possible, review if you can._

* * *

6 years of Harry Potter's stay in Hogwarts, there was not a single year that he is not involved to all the troubles that occurred. The 7th year, though he only stayed for a little while, brought the most damages. It seems that fate is not cutting him some slack as another trouble happened though there is a difference. His closest friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, would not be joining him to tackle this case. Instead, the one joining him today would be Daphne Greengrass. A woman that is a complete stranger to Harry.

"Why is it that trouble happens in Hogwarts whenever I go there?" Harry asked himself.

He is now currently in the little village of Hogsmeade. As a matter of fact, he is currently inside the Three Broomsticks, the most famous pub around the place. He is just sitting on a chair owned by the establishment; waiting for someone from Hogwarts to pick them up.

"He's here." Daphne said as she stood up from her chair while looking at the main door of the inn. A familiar large, shaggy haired, bearded man entered the establishment.

"'Arry!" Hagrid said loudly or bellowed according to some people inside the pub.

"Hagrid! It's so nice to meet you." Harry said as Hagrid hugged him.

"So, yeh an Auror now, eh 'Arry. C'mon! we best get going." Hagrid said as Harry and Daphne followed him outside of the pub.

Outside, a Thestral-drawn carriage is waiting for them. Hagrid took the coach seat while Harry and Daphne took the passenger seat. "'E'yah!" Hagrid shouted as the carriage started moving towards Hogwarts.

"Mister Hagrid. I am Auror Greengrass of the Homicide and Serious Crime Division. Would you mind if I ask a few questions." Daphne asked Hagrid

"What about?" Hagrid asked back as he turned his head towards his passengers.

"The homicide. The office said that a student died, is this true?" she asked further while taking out her notepad and quick-quote quill.

"Oh yes. Bad deed this murderin' was." the half-giant said

"Hagrid, what made you so sure it was a murder?" Harry asked

"Well, Madam Pomfrey said it was. You know me 'Arry. I know nuthin' about healin' stuff but Madam Pomfrey knows them best." Hagrid answered

"I take it that she already did preliminary examination of the deceased." Daphne said as Hagrid looked at her with confusion.

"Preliminary what now?" Hagrid asked

"She just means that Madam Pomfrey already did some studies at the dearly departed student." Harry clarified to his dear friend to which he just nodded.

"Mister Hagrid, how well do you know the deceased." Daphne asked again as the carriage is getting closer to the castle.

"Not much ma'am. He used to take my classes but after his fifth year, no more. What I can tell you is that he is a Slytherin. A quiet bunch, those ones are now but I s'pose it was better than what they were when ye'r still there 'Arry." Hagrid explained and then looked at Harry "How is 'Ermione and Ron these days 'Arry? Last I heard from them was last week and that's from their letters." the half-giant asked Harry.

"They are fine. In fact, we are all Aurors now. Me and Hermione just graduated from Auror Training and Ron took Shackebolt's offer of becoming an Auror without the training. Last I heard, Ron was in organized crime and Hermione was in the ESC." Harry told his friend

"The what?!" Hagrid replied loudly

"It is a division that mainly employs very studious people, professor." Daphne answered for Harry's sake.

"Well, 'Ermione is a very bright girl so that job suits her just fine. Please ma'am, don't call me professor or mister. Just call me Hagrid." the half-giant requested

"Will do but please don't call me ma'am. Makes me feel old. Just call me Ms. Greengrass or anything like that." Daphne said

"If you say so." Hagrid said with a smile

* * *

"Welcome back to Hogwarts Mr. Potter. It is a pleasure to have you here." the headmistress, Minerva McGonagall, said to Harry as she shook his hands.

"Likewise, Headmistress." Harry replied as McGonagall looked at Daphne.

"Forgive my manners. I am Minerva McGonagall, headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and you would be?" McGonagall said towards her

"Daphne Greengrass of the Auror Office: Homicide and Serious Crime Division. It seems you are already acquainted with my partner." Daphne said while showing to the headmistress her badge.

"Daphne Greengrass...Oh my! I honestly did not expected you to become an auror." McGonagall said as Daphne raised her hand after putting her badge back to her pocket.

"It is quite alright. Most of my former colleagues and acquaintances would never expect it either. If you may, who was the victim?" she replied

"Oh yes, his name would be Benedict Rockwell. A 7th year and was part of the Slytherin House. He was the Head Boy for this year and an excellent student. It is such a tragedy that he has to die when he has such a great future ahead of him." the Headmistress said as she walked while both Harry and Daphne followed.

"Ben!? I knew that kid. So he became the Head Boy? Never expected that. He is a shy one the last time I met him." Daphne said as they continued to walk

"You knew the victim?" Harry asked her

"Every Slytherin knew each other. Especially when the other houses treats us like were villains. If you are from the rich ones, we would be acquainted before even stepping on this institution. We always had each others' backs. However, we are not close. Like I said, he is a shy one." Daphne answered

"I agree with your statement Ms. Greengrass. The treatment against the Slytherin House just became worse after the second war. It is quite a headache. The cases of slander, harassment and bullying is extremely problematic but I never expected MURDER to be added to it." McGonagall exclaimed as they are now nearing the Hospital Wing.

The moment they entered the Hospital Wing. They saw the resident Healer of Hogwarts, Poppy Pomfrey, along with a man they do not recognize beside a long table were the body lay. The unidentified man wears stone grey robes over his button-up shirt with a matching color of trousers and chestnut coloured pair of suede winklepickers. A white linen blanket covered the victim's body, signifying that Benedict "Ben" Rockwell has indeed passed on.

"I presume this would be the victim." Daphne said as she approach the table.

"Yes." the man beside the table said.

"Ms. Pomfrey, what made you convinced that this was a murder?" Daphne questioned the Healer

"Well" Pomfrey said as she grabbed blanket and revealed the corpse." These bruises and wounds he got would suggest he was fighting someone or somebody before he was thrown out of the Astronomy Tower from the top. That already rules out suicide and lessen the chance of it to be a simple accident. Please don't mind that I at the very least returned his body to its original shape. I just can't have him here in his broken state. You know with all the blood and protruding bones" the healer explained as she used a nonverbal charm to make the bruises from the corpse light up in a orange-like hue.

"The estimated time of death would be around?" Daphne asked

" 11:30 to 12 noon." the healer answered as Daphne took a closer look at the body.

While studying the victim; she said "Cause of death would be skull, spinal and rib fractures causing excessive bleeding and multiple organ failure and also..." she said as she took a closer look at the victim's hands. "..he was thrown out of the tower physically." she finished

The last statement got the attention of the occupants of Hospital Wing. The man besides her said "What in the bloody hell makes you say that?"

"You would be?" Daphne asked back

"Nathaniel Westwick, Head of Slytherin House and Potion Master. Now answer my question" He said

"Alright, Mr. Westwick. Look at his fingernails. There are traces of skin and blood under the eponychium which would simply suggest that he managed to scratch the perpetrator's bare skin as he was probably grabbing anything he can hold unto to save his dear life." Daphne said as she raised the deceased's hands to her audience

"You are right and with a Polyjuice potion, we can identify who was the perpetrator." Harry said

"Then it would be a shame that we do not have a stock of Polyjuice Potion here." Nathaniel said to Harry.

"Harry, can you check the Astronomy Tower and find out if you can shed more light to this crime before we start accusing someone." Daphne said as Harry nodded. Daphne then turned towards Ms. McGonagall and said "Headmistress, can you please gather everyone in the Great Hall."

"What for?" McGongall asked her

"To inform them of what happen. We must not let the students speculate about what happened. The longer they speculate, the more ridiculous it gets and thus more problematic on your part madam. We should already satiate their curiosity to show that you are already taking care of the situation." Daphne replied as the Headmistress just nodded

"Alright, they will gathered there within an hour." McGonagall said as Madam Pomfrey took out a vial and began scraping of the skin and blood under the victim's fingernails and putting it inside the vial for evidence.

"I will gather my house at once headmistress." Nathaniel said towards the Headmistress to which she just nodded

"Thank you Nathaniel" she muttered

* * *

"Alright, it _seemingly_ looks like nothing happened." Harry said as he just arrived at the top floor of the Astronomy tower, tallest structure in the castle. He looked over the railings and then said "That is a long way down."

Harry then drew out his wand and then said "Vestigium Revelio" as a uncountable amount of footprints suddenly revealed themselves by glowing in a reddish hue. "Okay, that was expected" commented by Harry as his charm revealed every single footprint.

"Vestigium Revelio hora undecim de antemeridies" Harry cast as he specified the time to narrow down the footprints. Most of the glowing footprints faded as only six sets remained glowing on the floor. The five sets were grouped together and facing the only one pair of footprints. This particular one is quite close to the railings.

"That would be the victim's and..." Harry said as he written it down in his notepad. He then looked towards the other five "they would be the murderers or at least one of them is." he further stated

Harry noticed something regarding the five footprints. He approached it slowly and carefully for a closer look at one of the five.

"Female. One of the five is female and..." Harry said to himself as he took a closer look at the rest of the five and compared it the victim's.

"They are all students" Harry said grimly as he does not like his own conclusion. Students murdering other student. That is just so wrong. Sure, the teasing, insults, or even bullying is harsh but killing is just taking it to a whole new level. 'No' Harry thought 'It has to be deeper than just bullying' he finished as he looked at the set of footprints. Another wave from his wand and the footprints started moving like playing what had happened during that time.

'That would do for now' Harry thought as he continued to watch.

* * *

"Two were injured?" Daphne asked Harry to clarify his statement. They are currently in one of the rooms near the Great Hall which they will be using as a temporary field office only for the duration of the investigation. Honestly, the room is quite big for just two people. Harry is guessing that they might get more to cover more ground but it was not his call to make, that falls on the shoulders of his partner. Moving on, the staff has been accommodating them with supplies they can spare. They provided them a spare board to aid them in their investigation as well as a desk and chair to use with a complimentary parchments and quills. On the board, details regarding the incident was written. Information like a timeline of events, background about victim, possible suspects and the likes. Harry continued writing on one side of the board and that is the one regarding the suspects.

Harry just nodded and then said "Yes, the victim managed to blast one of the suspects towards one of the post while the other tackled the victim and that must be when the victim managed to scratch him."

"So we are not only looking for someone that has scratch marks but also someone with backaches and bruises caused by the impact of the spell on his frontside." Daphne stated as Harry shook his head.

"It is not that simple. Whoever they were, they tried to cover their tracks. I mean, the post where one of the suspects collided unto was repaired. It is safer to assume that whatever injuries the suspects had were healed by one among them." Harry said

Daphne just smirked at Harry's statement. 'Strange...' Harry thought 'She must have thought of a plan'

"It is good then Harry." Daphne said as Harry looked at her wide-eyed.

"What do you mean 'good'? They were trying to cover their tracks! By principle, that means they are harder to apprehend." Harry exclaimed at his partner

"It is because they tried. As of now, they are feeling safe, assured, and a little confident that they cannot be caught. This is the moment where we can catch them off-guard. Victory can make you weak, Potter. They will be completely shocked after we got one of the suspects that the rest would panic, making them easier to notice." Daphne clarified to Harry.

"Good theory but it just got one problem of catching...oh! The skin and blood. Having that means one of them is as good as identified." Harry stated to which Daphne just nodded

Daphne then spoke and said "You said that the five were all students and one of them is female. How did you came up with such at conclusion?" Daphne asked

Harry answered "The shoeprints. It is all because of the shoeprints."

The statement piqued the female Auror's curiosity and then asked "What about the shoe prints?"

"All of the students are wearing almost identical uniforms except the linings and the patches. However, all of their shoes are the same. For the male's, the tip would be rounded unlike what I have seen from the Head of the Slytherin House; that one is narrow tipped." He explained as she was listening intently

"A good observation but how did you came up with the other one being female?" Daphne inquired

"Heels. It was a form of heels but not one of those tall and narrowed heel-type." Harry answered

Daphne just sighed and said "Stilettos, those were your tall and narrowed heel-type but that was not the shoe of the POI. However, it was a form of heels though not as tall as stilettos. You certain it was a female student?"

Harry just nodded at the question and then said "Definitely, all of the Hogwarts Staff were preoccupied with most conducting their classes or preoccupied. Also, Madam Sinistra, the Astronomy professor, was with Madam Pince in the library."

It was on that statement that Daphne closed her eyes and started breathing very slowly like she was meditating. Harry find this extremely peculiar and more so when she started murmuring incoherent words.

"The uniform did not change since we were studying here, am I right?" She said suddenly

Harry was startled but easily recovered his composure and said "Well...uh...yes. The uniform did not changed since I was last studying here."

Daphne then closed her eyes and began saying to no one "A female student but deviates a little from the norm but why?..."

"Deviates from the norm? What do you mean?" he asked

"There is a uniform but the female chose to adjust it. Probably thinking the uniform was quite bland for her taste... That's it!" Daphne said as Harry was startled by her outburst.

"What is it?" he asked

"You know about male student's shoes while I know the female ones. You know that students tend to make their uniform look different regardless of how miniscule or how apparent the changes were. For the male students, you loosen your tie, roll your sleeves, or remove the cardigan or sweater. The female students tend to do the same." Daphne explained to which Harry is a little lost. Seriously, why are they talking about fashion now?

"Ok, but how is this related to the case?" Harry asked with concern to which Daphne stared directly to Harry.

"It is because I was profiling one of our suspects. The female one. She practically stands out." Daphne answered

Harry is just plainly perplexed at the statement and then said "That is great but I am not sure that you can effectively profile someone with just the shoeprint."

Daphne just smirked at Harry's statement and responded "Of course not. However, any information we can get from our suspects gives us all the advantage we need. I am already suspecting that the girl is a sort of a Queen B and one of the male suspects is her boyfriend."

"Seriously? And what is a 'Queen B'?" Harry just stared back at her with one of his eyebrows raised

"It was an American muggle term referring to a female student that acts like a leader of some sorts in a school setting or just plianly want to be popular. They crave attention and expect others to obey their whim. Hence, they are often described as a bitch. Pansy Parkinson is a great example of this stereotype." Daphne said

"Alright, so a Queen B is a 'Queen Bitch'? I suppose that is what you are saying." Harry said

She just smiled at that statement and said "I couldn't say it better myself."

Harry just nodded but then said "So what makes you conclude that the female suspect is a Queen B with just a shoe print?"

"Well, I remembered Pansy. Most students tend to just remove an article of clothing from the uniform like the robes, neckties, or the sweaters and also they just supplement the uniform with necklaces, rings, and other accessories. Draco himself only did what I just said. However, there are a few female students that would be daring to replace a part of their school attire. It was a female favourite to always replace the shoes. I remembered that Pansy practically had a different pair of shoes prepared for each day." Daphne answered as Harry is trying to remember Pansy's appearance. In Harry's case, he remembered her foul attitude more rather than her appearance.

"Bloody hell, a different pair shoes per day?! That is quite overboard." Harry exclaimed.

Daphne just inclined closer to her partner with an excited look on her face and then said "Exactly."

And Harry's response was "Huh?!"


End file.
